LBJ: “Let us continue”
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Transcript of LBJ: “Let us continue”
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LBJ: “Let us continue”■ Quickly pushed thru Congress 2 key
“Kennedy” bills:–$10B tax reduction – led to
consumer spending & job growth
–Civil Rights Act (1964) – declared segregation in public facilities illegal
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Lyndon Johnson in Action■ 1964: LBJ waged “war on poverty”
–Office of Econ Opportunity–Job Corps for HS dropouts–Head Start for preschoolers–Adult ed / technical training
opportunities ■ 10,000,000 fewer in poverty by 1970
In 1964, the U.S. had 35 million poor people
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The Election of 1964■ 1964: LBJ ran against:
–Cons Repub Barry Goldwater rejected LBJ’s liberal welfare programs & called for a stronger foreign policy stance
–Segregationist George Wallace■ LBJ won in a landslide & the
Democrats took control of Congress for 1st time in 25 years
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The Great Society ■ “Great Society” domestic agenda:
–Medicare & Medicaid extended health insurance to elderly & poor
–$1 billion for schools–Voting Rights Act of 1965 banned
literacy tests & provided federal registrars for polls
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The Triumph of Reform■ By 1965, Congress passed 89 social
agenda laws or reforms
–Great Society most comprehensive agenda of social reform since FDR
–But…Vietnam War pulled down his social agenda efforts
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Johnson Escalates the Vietnam War
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LBJ Escalates the Vietnam War■ LBJ continued JFK’s strong foreign
policy positions too:–CIA-sponsored coups in Brazil,
Panama, & the Dominican Republic–Continued Eisenhower & JFK
policies towards Vietnam■ LBJ found himself under attack from
Congress, the media, & universities
“I am not going to lose Vietnam. I am not going to be the president who saw
Southeast Asia go the way China went.”—LBJ
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LBJ Escalates the Vietnam War■ 1964:
–Bombed N Vietnam – revenge for attack on USS Maddox in Gulf of Tonkin
■ Gulf of Tonkin Resolution gave LBJ authority to:–Defend S Vietnam at any cost–Unlimited military intervention at
LBJ’s discretion
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The Vietnam War
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Escalation■ 1965 marked beginning of full-scale
US involvement in Vietnam–LBJ said “without US action, defeat
is inevitable”–Authorized bombing of
NV/requested 50,000 soldiers–Never explained how US would win
Advisors wanted 100,000 troops in 1965 & 100,000 more in 1966; Estimations were 500
U.S. deaths per month
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Stalemate■ 1968: 500,000 US troops in Vietnam
–US bombings & “search & destroy” attacks ineffective
–Soviet & Chinese weaponry freely flowed into N Vietnam
–Reckless bombings killed thousands of innocent civilians
■ The bloody stalemate & media depiction of the war led to protests
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Image of the “My Lai Massacre,” 1968
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